The Vietnamese team has not yet stabilized its spine: If you want to be ‘strong’, how should you treat the disease?

The Vietnamese team should look to other opponents

With the Thai team, the strongest team in theory at AFF Cup 2024, up to now, they have experimented a lot, arranged many different lineups in past matches, however, it is not difficult. Realizing that, no matter how much they change, the football team from the land of the Golden Temple is always stable in the “vertical axis” of the spine. This vertical axis of the Thai team includes goalkeeper Patiwat Khammai, midfielder Pansa Hemviboon, central midfielder Weerathep Pomphan and striker Patrik Gustavson. Usually, coach Masatada Ishii of the Thai team always arranges these players to play from the beginning. Only after reaching a satisfactory score in each match does Mr. Ishii gradually withdraw them from the field.

Another team, playing quite stably up to this point in the tournament is Singapore. Compared to Thailand and even compared to the Vietnamese team, the quality of Singapore’s personnel is not equal. But they are not inferior to the Vietnamese team in terms of stability. The Lion Island team always maintains a backbone including goalkeeper Izwan Mahbud, midfielder Amirul Adli, central midfielder Shah Shahiran and striker Shawal Anuar. The players who play the role of forming the backbone for the Thai and Singaporean teams are mostly experienced, have a mature playing style, rarely make mistakes, and have a certain voice with the teammates around them. In addition, when needed, these players can become “exploding points” for the whole team, helping the home team resolve deadlock.

For example, Singapore striker Shawal Anuar is leading the top scorer list with 4 goals, even though Singapore is not a strong team. Or midfielder Weerathep Pomphan always appears in every hot spot of the Thai team, acting as both a ball retriever and an attack initiator for the Golden Temple team.

What about us?

With the Vietnamese team, domestic football fans have not clearly identified this backbone. In theory, the Vietnamese team in the first two matches seems to have found people worthy of trust, playing on a “vertical axis”, including goalkeeper Nguyen Filip, midfielder Nguyen Thanh Chung, midfielder Nguyen Quang Hai and striker Nguyen Tien Linh.

They played maturely and made great contributions in the first wins of the Vietnamese team at the tournament, especially the 1-0 victory over Indonesia. But then, in the match against the Philippines, coach Kim Sang-sik suddenly broke this vertical axis: midfielder Thanh Chung and midfielder Tien Linh were placed on the bench, making room for experiments, while money Defender Quang Hai was taken off the field too early (after only 1 half).

Commenting on this, former VFF Professional Vice President Duong Vu Lam said: “Coach Kim Sang-sik’s decision to use personnel surprised me. Normally, no matter how much the professionals change or experiment, they still retain the core players to keep the squad stable, to keep the stability for the team. gameplay. It is also rare for any team in the world to replace the entire defenders after just one match.”

Sharing the same opinion as Mr. Duong Vu Lam, former coach of the Vietnamese team, Mr. Phan Thanh Hung commented: “Central defenders Thanh Chung and Bui Tien Dung were playing very stably in the previous two matches, but suddenly they were all withdrawn in the second match.” In the match against the Philippines, Quang Hai and Tien Linh were also not allowed to play together, while these players were keeping the Vietnamese team’s attack stable. The Vietnamese team needs stability in the next stage of the tournament.”

Without a strong backbone, it is also understandable that the Vietnamese team is susceptible to a breakdown in their playing style. Hopefully in the next match, which is the key match against the Myanmar team, coach Kim Sang-sik’s team will find the necessary stability. The Vietnamese team still has the right to self-determination in their hands.